[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 31 (Tuesday, February 24, 2015)]
[House]
[Pages H1095-H1098]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1615
  FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION CONSOLIDATED REPORTING ACT OF 2015

  Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 734) to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to consolidate 
the reporting obligations of the Federal Communications Commission in 
order to improve congressional oversight and reduce reporting burdens.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 734

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Communications 
     Commission Consolidated Reporting Act of 2015''.

     SEC. 2. COMMUNICATIONS MARKETPLACE REPORT.

       Title I of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et 
     seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

     ``SEC. 13. COMMUNICATIONS MARKETPLACE REPORT.

       ``(a) In General.--In the last quarter of every even-
     numbered year, the Commission shall publish on its website 
     and submit to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 
     House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 
     Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on the 
     state of the communications marketplace.
       ``(b) Contents.--Each report required by subsection (a) 
     shall--
       ``(1) assess the state of competition in the communications 
     marketplace, including competition to deliver voice, video, 
     audio,

[[Page H1096]]

     and data services among providers of telecommunications, 
     providers of commercial mobile service (as defined in section 
     332), multichannel video programming distributors (as defined 
     in section 602), broadcast stations, providers of satellite 
     communications, Internet service providers, and other 
     providers of communications services;
       ``(2) assess the state of deployment of communications 
     capabilities, including advanced telecommunications 
     capability (as defined in section 706 of the 
     Telecommunications Act of 1996 (47 U.S.C. 1302)), regardless 
     of the technology used for such deployment, including whether 
     advanced telecommunications capability is being deployed to 
     all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion;
       ``(3) assess whether laws, regulations, or regulatory 
     practices (whether those of the Federal Government, States, 
     political subdivisions of States, Indian tribes or tribal 
     organizations (as such terms are defined in section 4 of the 
     Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
     U.S.C. 450b)), or foreign governments) pose a barrier to 
     competitive entry into the communications marketplace or to 
     the competitive expansion of existing providers of 
     communications services;
       ``(4) describe the agenda of the Commission for the next 2-
     year period for addressing the challenges and opportunities 
     in the communications marketplace that were identified 
     through the assessments under paragraphs (1) through (3); and
       ``(5) describe the actions that the Commission has taken in 
     pursuit of the agenda described pursuant to paragraph (4) in 
     the previous report submitted under this section.
       ``(c) Extension.--If the President designates a 
     Commissioner as Chairman of the Commission during the last 
     quarter of an even-numbered year, the portion of the report 
     required by subsection (b)(4) may be published on the website 
     of the Commission and submitted to the Committee on Energy 
     and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 
     Senate as an addendum during the first quarter of the 
     following odd-numbered year.
       ``(d) Special Requirements.--
       ``(1) Assessing competition.--In assessing the state of 
     competition under subsection (b)(1), the Commission shall 
     consider all forms of competition, including the effect of 
     intermodal competition, facilities-based competition, and 
     competition from new and emergent communications services, 
     including the provision of content and communications using 
     the Internet.
       ``(2) Assessing deployment.--In assessing the state of 
     deployment under subsection (b)(2), the Commission shall 
     compile a list of geographical areas that are not served by 
     any provider of advanced telecommunications capability.
       ``(3) International comparisons and demographic 
     information.--The Commission may use readily available data 
     to draw appropriate comparisons between the United States 
     communications marketplace and the international 
     communications marketplace and to correlate its assessments 
     with demographic information.
       ``(4) Considering small businesses.--In assessing the state 
     of competition under subsection (b)(1) and regulatory 
     barriers under subsection (b)(3), the Commission shall 
     consider market entry barriers for entrepreneurs and other 
     small businesses in the communications marketplace in 
     accordance with the national policy under section 257(b).
       ``(5) Considering cable rates.--In assessing the state of 
     competition under subsection (b)(1), the Commission shall 
     include in each report required by subsection (a) the 
     aggregate average total amount paid by cable systems in 
     compensation under section 325 during the period covered by 
     such report.''.

     SEC. 3. CONSOLIDATION OF REDUNDANT REPORTS; CONFORMING 
                   AMENDMENTS.

       (a) ORBIT Act Report.--Section 646 of the Communications 
     Satellite Act of 1962 (47 U.S.C. 765e; 114 Stat. 57) is 
     repealed.
       (b) Satellite Competition Report.--Section 4 of Public Law 
     109-34 (47 U.S.C. 703) is repealed.
       (c) International Broadband Data Report.--Section 103 of 
     the Broadband Data Improvement Act (47 U.S.C. 1303) is 
     amended--
       (1) by striking subsection (b); and
       (2) by redesignating subsections (c) through (e) as 
     subsections (b) through (d), respectively.
       (d) Status of Competition in the Market for the Delivery of 
     Video Programming Report.--Section 628 of the Communications 
     Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 548) is amended--
       (1) by striking subsection (g);
       (2) by redesignating subsection (j) as subsection (g); and
       (3) by transferring subsection (g) (as redesignated) so 
     that it appears after subsection (f).
       (e) Report on Cable Industry Prices.--
       (1) In general.--Section 623 of the Communications Act of 
     1934 (47 U.S.C. 543) is amended--
       (A) by striking subsection (k); and
       (B) by redesignating subsections (l) through (o) as 
     subsections (k) through (n), respectively.
       (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 613(a)(3) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 533(a)(3)) is amended 
     by striking ``623(l)'' and inserting ``623(k)''.
       (f) Triennial Report Identifying and Eliminating Market 
     Entry Barriers for Entrepreneurs and Other Small 
     Businesses.--Section 257 of the Communications Act of 1934 
     (47 U.S.C. 257) is amended by striking subsection (c).
       (g) Section 706 Report.--Section 706 of the 
     Telecommunications Act of 1996 (47 U.S.C. 1302) is amended--
       (1) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
       ``(b) Determination.--If the Commission determines in its 
     report under section 13 of the Communications Act of 1934, 
     after considering the availability of advanced 
     telecommunications capability to all Americans (including, in 
     particular, elementary and secondary schools and classrooms), 
     that advanced telecommunications capability is not being 
     deployed to all Americans in a reasonable and timely fashion, 
     the Commission shall take immediate action to accelerate 
     deployment of such capability by removing barriers to 
     infrastructure investment and by promoting competition in the 
     telecommunications market.'';
       (2) by striking subsection (c);
       (3) in subsection (d), by striking ``this subsection'' and 
     inserting ``this section''; and
       (4) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (c).
       (h) State of Competitive Market Conditions With Respect to 
     Commercial Mobile Radio Services.--Section 332(c)(1)(C) of 
     the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 332(c)(1)(C)) is 
     amended by striking the first and second sentences.
       (i) Previously Eliminated Annual Report.--
       (1) In general.--Section 4 of the Communications Act of 
     1934 (47 U.S.C. 154) is amended--
       (A) by striking subsection (k); and
       (B) by redesignating subsections (l) through (o) as 
     subsections (k) through (n), respectively.
       (2) Conforming amendments.--The Communications Act of 1934 
     is amended--
       (A) in section 9(i), by striking ``In the Commission's 
     annual report, the Commission shall prepare an analysis of 
     its progress in developing such systems and'' and inserting 
     ``The Commission''; and
       (B) in section 309(j)(8)(B), by striking the last sentence.
       (j) Additional Outdated Reports.--The Communications Act of 
     1934 is further amended--
       (1) in section 4--
       (A) in subsection (b)(2)(B)(ii), by striking ``and shall 
     furnish notice of such action'' and all that follows through 
     ``subject of the waiver''; and
       (B) in subsection (g), by striking paragraph (2);
       (2) in section 215--
       (A) by striking subsection (b); and
       (B) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (b);
       (3) in section 227(e), by striking paragraph (4);
       (4) in section 309(j)--
       (A) by striking paragraph (12); and
       (B) in paragraph (15)(C), by striking clause (iv);
       (5) in section 331(b), by striking the last sentence;
       (6) in section 336(e), by amending paragraph (4) to read as 
     follows:
       ``(4) Report.--The Commission shall annually advise the 
     Congress on the amounts collected pursuant to the program 
     required by this subsection.'';
       (7) in section 339(c), by striking paragraph (1);
       (8) in section 396--
       (A) by striking subsection (i);
       (B) in subsection (k)--
       (i) in paragraph (1), by striking subparagraph (F); and
       (ii) in paragraph (3)(B)(iii), by striking subclause (V);
       (C) in subsection (l)(1)(B), by striking ``shall be 
     included'' and all that follows through ``The audit report''; 
     and
       (D) by striking subsection (m);
       (9) in section 398(b)(4), by striking the third sentence;
       (10) in section 624A(b)(1)--
       (A) by striking ``Report; regulations'' and inserting 
     ``Regulations'';
       (B) by striking ``Within 1 year after'' and all that 
     follows through ``on means of assuring'' and inserting ``The 
     Commission shall issue such regulations as are necessary to 
     assure''; and
       (C) by striking ``Within 180 days after'' and all that 
     follows through ``to assure such compatibility.''; and
       (11) in section 713, by striking subsection (a).

     SEC. 4. EFFECT ON AUTHORITY.

       Nothing in this Act or the amendments made by this Act 
     shall be construed to expand or contract the authority of the 
     Federal Communications Commission.

     SEC. 5. OTHER REPORTS.

       Nothing in this Act or the amendments made by this Act 
     shall be construed to prohibit or otherwise prevent the 
     Federal Communications Commission from producing any 
     additional reports otherwise within the authority of the 
     Commission.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. Walden) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oregon.


                             General Leave

  Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members

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may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and insert extraneous materials in the Record on the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Oregon?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, in our multiyear effort to update the Communications 
Act, one of the most common themes we have heard is the convergence of 
the telecommunications marketplace. No longer are companies just one 
service over just one medium. Both technology and consumer expectations 
have completely changed the game. However, the agency tasked with 
regulating the communications sector still exists in the outdated and 
siloed structure that reflects decades-old assumptions, even how they 
evaluate and report on the industry.
  While that fractured approach will be a continued focus of our 
CommActUpdate process, this bill will take an important first step 
toward modernizing the way we look at this sector and its regulator. 
This legislation consolidates eight separate reports that require the 
FCC to evaluate the state of competition in various sectors and 
combines those eight reports into just a single biennial report to 
Congress on the communications marketplace as a whole.
  This bill also takes the important step of eliminating outdated 
reports that only serve to junk up the Communications Act and cause 
confusion. Reports like the ORBIT Act--which I have a copy of here--are 
aimed at ensuring that satellites that were long ago privatized are 
procompetitive, an examination that the FCC and the industry recognizes 
as both outdated, unnecessary, and burdensome. There are still laws on 
the books that address such outdated technologies as telegraphs. This 
is a small but significant step toward cleaning up the act and 
modernizing the laws and the agency that control this very dynamic 
marketplace.
  Ensuring that all of the reports on the books are both necessary and 
effective helps to reduce the burden on the agency. It also helps the 
regulatory agency make more informed decisions.
  I would like to take a moment to thank my colleagues, Representative 
Scalise, Ranking Member Eshoo, and the ranking member of the full 
committee, Mr. Pallone, for their work to make this bill a bipartisan 
success both today and, frankly, in the last two sessions of Congress. 
I am hopeful that the first bill to pass out of our subcommittee this 
Congress is an indication of the work that we can get done when we 
collaborate.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to vote in favor of this 
legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 734, the FCC 
Consolidated Reporting Act of 2015. Congress has charged the Federal 
Communications Commission with overseeing industries that make up one-
sixth of our national economy. The communications and technology 
sectors are driving economic growth across the Nation, connecting 
businesses to markets large and small and delivering innovative new 
products and services to consumers.
  As part of this critical mission, Congress has tasked the FCC with 
compiling reports to provide the public with information about these 
dynamic markets. Democrats and Republicans agree that the FCC needs to 
collect good data. Consumers and businesses rely on this information, 
and we here in Congress need this information, too, in order to make 
sound policy decisions and conduct effective oversight of the FCC.
  Mr. Speaker, by consolidating certain reports and eliminating 
references to other outdated reports, this bill allows the FCC to use 
the agency's limited resources more wisely and present a more holistic 
analysis of the communications marketplace. At the same time, we have 
worked together to ensure this effort to promote efficiency does not 
undermine important existing FCC obligations and authorities. We were 
able to come to agreement in the Energy and Commerce Committee on 
language that preserves the FCC's duty to provide transparency to 
consumers about their cable bills and does not alter the FCC's 
authority over broadband under section 706.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Communications and Technology 
Subcommittee Ranking Member Eshoo for her leadership on these issues 
and Chairman Upton, Chairman Walden, and Representative Scalise for 
working with Democrats to address their concerns during the committee's 
consideration of the bill.
  In short, this bill is an example of the progress we can make when we 
engage in a truly bipartisan process. The consideration of H.R. 734 
should be a model for legislative efforts in our committee and the 
entire House. Working together through regular order, we crafted 
legislation that addressed concerns from both sides of the aisle, and I 
look forward to continuing to work with our Republican and Democratic 
colleagues in the Senate to help this bill become law.
  I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.
  Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I now yield such time as he may consume to 
the distinguished gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Scalise), our majority 
whip, and a terrific member of our subcommittee.
  Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the chairman of the 
subcommittee, Mr. Walden, for his leadership in bringing this forward 
and the ranking member, Mr. Pallone, as well as Ms. Eshoo, the ranking 
member of the subcommittee, who has been working very closely I know 
with myself and others to bring a good, bipartisan bill that actually 
gets rid of outdated regulations and reports.
  This FCC Consolidated Reporting Act actually reduces the workload 
that the FCC has placed for years and years that has been outdated. If 
you look at some of the reports that have been required for years that 
they are supposed to go and consolidate and accumulate, they have 
reports on competitiveness within the telegraph. Clearly, Mr. Speaker, 
it is long past time that we update these laws and get the FCC reform 
in place that will finally bring some consolidation so that industry 
can look at a full picture instead of a bunch of different silos and 
reports that are so outdated, like the telegraph, that they are not 
even being done, yet these laws are still on the books.
  This is an important reform, and it is a good bipartisan reform that 
shows that Congress can work to get these kinds of things done to 
actually make things simpler in the real world and make an agency like 
the FCC more efficient in their operations.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of this bill.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I would urge support of this bill, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I join my friend and colleague from New 
Jersey and ask our colleagues to support passage of this legislation, 
and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. ESHOO. Mr. Speaker, this legislation, the FCC Consolidated 
Reporting Act of 2015 (H.R. 734) is a reflection of what our 
Subcommittee can accomplish when we work together in a bipartisan 
manner.
  Earlier this month, Chairman Walden, Rep. Scalise and I introduced 
H.R. 734 as a way to streamline Congressionally-mandated reporting 
requirements under a single, industry-wide report. I've consistently 
supported this goal because it frees the FCC to focus on its ultimate 
mission: to protect the public interest and promote competition. These 
reports and the data collected serve a critical role in supporting the 
FCC's decision-making and our work as policymakers on issues like 
broadband deployment and adoption, cable pricing and assessing the 
state of competition.
  As part of the Committee's markup of H.R. 734, two important 
clarifications were made. First, in our effort to consolidate reporting 
requirements, the legislation clarifies that the FCC's `706' Report 
does not in any way impact or alter the explicit grant of broadband 
authority that the court affirmed in the Verizon case last year.
  Second, the legislation preserves the FCC's obligation to examine how 
retransmission consent fees impact a consumer's monthly bill.
  For all these reasons, I support and urge my colleagues to pass H.R. 
734.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is will the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 734.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.

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  Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this question will be postponed.

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